Dian Wei (onyomi: Ten I) is one of Cao Cao's many generals who was renowned for his strength and bravery. He fought in several battles in his lord's honor before he acted as the rear guard for his lord's escape at Wan Castle. Cao Cao is reputed to have grieved his passing. Romance of the Three Kingdoms has Cao Cao praise Dian Wei as a match for E Lai (悪来, onyomi: Aku Rai), the same name of a mighty bureaucrat who once served King Zhou. His death in the novel is largely believed to have inspired Benkei's death in fiction.

Dynasty Warriors fans voted him to fifty-second place in Gamecity's Dynasty Warriors 7 character popularity poll; he placed sixty-eighth in the Dynasty Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends popularity poll. The latest poll for the eighth installment puts him in seventy-third. The character poll for overseas fans puts him in twelfth place for the Wei division. His nickname, E Lai, is often literally translated in the English script as the "Coming Evil" rather than keeping it as a person's name.

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Dian Wei acts as one of Cao Cao's early bodyguards. He earns special recognition from his lord and is either called the "coming evil" or one "who matches the power of the warriors of yore" throughout the series. He is best remembered for sacrificing his all for his lord's escape, stalling Zhang Xiu's army at Wan Castle. Unless players are playing his story mode, he will usually only appear during the early battles of the Three Kingdoms period.

His Legend Mode in Dynasty Warriors 4: Xtreme Legends reenacts him defending Cao Cao's escape from Wan Castle. Zhang Xiu had surrendered to Cao Cao and welcomed him within his domain. However, Cao Cao eloped with his uncle's wife, which angered Zhang Xiu. Caught in a surprise attack and the castle in flames, Dian Wei volunteers to guard Cao Cao's escape. He finds an open path for his master but suffers from two grievous arrow wounds. Regardless of his injury, Dian Wei continues to oppose his lord's pursuers and fights any generals -including Zhang Xiu- until Cao Cao escapes.

In Dynasty Warriors 5, he is scouted by Xiahou Dun when he wrestled a tiger with his bare hands and soon recruited under Cao Cao's service. During the Yellow Turban Rebellion, his master spots his ferocity in battle and praises him with his nickname. Dian Wei proudly carries his new name and soon became known throughout the land as Cao Cao's loyal bodyguard. When Cao Cao is betrayed at Wan Castle, Dian Wei rescues his lord and defeats several of Zhang Xiu's troops. Although he couldn't strike down Zhang Xiu, he contributes to Lu Bu's downfall at Xia Pi Castle and chases Liu Bei at Chang Ban. He protects his liege's escape a second time after their army loses at Chi Bi. Undeterred by any who come to attack his lord, he saves Cao Cao a third time from would-be Wu assassins in his ending.

His Legend Mode in the Xtreme Legends expansion begins with Emperor Xian taken prisoner by the remnants of Dong Zhuo's army. He shares the stage with his master, Xiahou Dun and Xu Zhu. Dian Wei starts in the far east and he demonstrates his strength during the conflict. When Lu Bu arrives to try to claim their royal traveler, Cao Cao orders Dian Wei to take down their unexpected rival. Once the emperor reaches safety, he is officially named Cao Cao's protector and is deeply honored with his new position.

Dian Wei's ending scene in Dynasty Warriors: Online has him launch a surprise attack on the unsuspecting player who blocks the strike with ease. Delighted with their apprentice's vigilance, he considers them ready to protect their master from potential assassins.

Dian Wei is implied to be a man of unfavorable origin in Dynasty Warriors 6. Cao Cao employs him regardless of his reputation and trusts his new vassal to be his shield. Although his master is pleased with his performance, Dian Wei is additionally given other responsibilities to complete, such as leading his own army and instructing troops. Though he makes a name for himself as a magnificent general, Dian Wei isn't interested in politics or philosophies and only works to protect Cao Cao. When Wei defeats Wu at He Fei Castle, Cao Cao entrusts the safety of the new land to his vassals. Hearing from Xiahou Dun that their lord has departed, Dian Wei abandons his duties and catches up to Cao Cao. Simply explaining that he only desires to do what he does best, Dian Wei vows to forever be Cao Cao's shield and they leave together.

Dian Wei starts off on his own at Yan Province in the following title and challenges Xiahou Dun to a duel. But after he is defeated, Xiahou Dun brings him to Cao Cao to become a bodyguard. In battle, Dian Wei fights Xu Zhu, who joins Cao Cao's army soon afterwards, and the two of them develop a deep friendship. They protect their lord as he fights Tao Qian at Xu Province and shelters the Emperor from rival warlords. At Wan Castle, Dian Wei and Cao Cao find themselves in a trap and are attacked by Zhang Xiu's forces. As they rush to escape and reunite with Cao Cao's army, Jia Xu has an army of archers shoot arrows at Cao Cao. Dian Wei pushes his lord away and gets himself pierced by several arrows. After seeing Cao Cao successfully escape, Dian Wei dies, telling Xu Zhu that they will tend to his fields another time.

Dian Wei's first Legendary Battle revolves around his participation in the Battle of Puyang against Lu Bu's forces. His second sees his final struggle to ensure his lord's safety as Cao Cao tries to escape Wan Castle.

He is already recruited by Cao Cao at the start of Dynasty Warriors Next and is in the focus at the start of chapter four. He is instrumental in recruiting Xu Zhu after he pacifies the giant over his crops. Later on, Dian Wei and Cao Cao are invited to a banquet by Jia Xu. Dian Wei stalls the enemy ambush long enough for Cao Cao to make his escape from Wan Castle and continues to block the way outside the castle walls. He perishes when a group of archers shoot him from behind, entrusting Xu Zhu to guard their lord. His death results in Jia Xu's allegiance to Cao Cao.

In Dynasty Warriors 8, he makes his first appearance fighting Lu Bu at Hulao Gate. Cao Cao personally takes note of his strength and recruits him afterwards. If the player achieves certain conditions, Dian Wei will survive Wan Castle and appear at Guandu and Chibi. If the historical route is taken despite Dian Wei's survival, he still participates in the battle and joins Zhang Liao and Xu Zhu in escorting Cao Cao to safety after Wei is defeated. On the hypothetical route, Dian Wei instead helps secure the front lines in preparation for Wei successfully countering Wu's fire attack. He later participates in the campaign against Wu at Jianye before joining his lord in the final offensive against Shu.

In Dynasty Warriors 9, Dian Wei was originally stationed away from Wan Castle when his lord accepts Zhang Xiu's surrender, but he chooses to disobey orders when he senses danger and rushes at Cao Cao's side. Defending his lord's escape, Dian Wei remains at Wan Castle to fight off pursuers to his last. When Zhang Xiu and Jia Xu surrender for real, Cao Cao holds a celebratory banquet but also fondly toasts with Xiahou Dun, Xiahou Yuan and Xu Zhu of the loss of Dian Wei.

During Orochi's scenario, Dian Wei is one of the many generals who stood alongside his lord at Yi Ling. However, the heavy bombardment caused by the cannons of Orochi's army forces him to retreat. After the battle's climax, he carries his wounded lord to safety and helps him hide from the public eye. As Cao Cao returns to his forces during the main events in Warriors Orochi, Dian Wei dutifully accompanies him.

He continues to faithfully serve and follow his master in the sequel. When Cao Pi and the men under his command struggle against Kiyomori, Dian Wei reports the incident to Cao Cao and he joins the rescue team at Komaki-Nagakute. He collaborates with Ranmaru and Zhou Tai for their dream mode to rescue their respective lords from Liu Bei's army.

Pacifying the land for Wei, Dian Wei became the protector for villages within the central plains in Warriors Orochi 3. During the original timeline, he was last seen at Guangzong fighting bandits and was among the Wei officers that disappeared after the Hydra's emergence.

When the Coalition arrive from the future and engage the Shu-Oda alliance at Changban, Dian Wei arrives into the battlefield to aid a neutral village, only to find that it had been destroyed. Enraged beyond reasoning, he is defeated by the Coalition and withdraws before Jia Xu can speak to him. Shingen and Kenshin later recall seeing him at Guangzong, and travel back to their past with Jia Xu to help Dian Wei reach Changban sooner. With the threat weakened, they then return to an alternate future at Changban and help Dian Wei a second time. The warrior thanks them and gladly joins once he hears that Cao Cao is with the Coalition.

In Ultimate, he returns to his post as Cao Cao's bodyguard and joins his lord in investigating Mt. Niutou after hearing that Pang Tong was being attacked by demons. Although the Wei forces rescue Pang Tong, he is revealed to be a fake, and he spreads chaos by misdirecting Shu forces into attacking the Wei forces. Once the misunderstanding is cleared up by Shennong, Dian Wei accompanies the mystic to various battlefields to mitigate the chaos by Tamamo.

Dian Wei appears during the later stages in Kessen II. Once he saw Wei's might on the battlefield, he approaches Cao Cao and offers his services. He then appoints himself as Cao Cao's bodyguard. While his intentions to guard his liege are pure, he isn't a rational thinker and is known to get caught in his zest for battle. During the siege of Fan Castle, he may be lured out by Guan Yu's taunts, thus leaving the southern gate open and defenseless. He is a strong War oriented general yet is very weak against magic.

When asked why Dian Wei is bald in the series, the producer said the development team did so to "make him look strong and unique". Their decision was based on aesthetic preferences only, the producer stating that there was no folklore involved with their choice.

Dian Wei is a determined and straightforward man who is devoted in his mission to protect Cao Cao. He often bellows for a worthy opponent, challenging for anyone to stop him. He doesn't like overthinking the details and just wants to get the job done. Fierce on the battlefield, he turns into a simple and humble man in his lord's presence or around the common folk, and is one to consider being friends with anyone at any given time if he's not forced to fight with them. Dian Wei will likely be the vassal in Wei who frets the most over Cao Cao's well-being. Dian Wei proudly calls his lord "Prime Minister" or "my lord" and is very proud of the nickname that his lord gave him.

Dian Wei greatly respects Xiahou Dun and calls him "my lord" or "Lord Xiahou" whilst referring to him. In the Japanese script, he addresses him as the respectful yet colloquial "danna" (旦那). He is good friends with Xu Zhu. Both men can rely on the other to follow their duty to Cao Cao.

In games where Dian Wei survives Wan Castle he dislikes Jia Xu for his personality and his attempt to take Cao Cao's life. In terms of his attitude towards the peasants, Dian Wei is quick enough to fly into a rage if they are hurt and is apologetic enough when he's forced to steal from them. In terms of the former case, it can be difficult to rationalize with Dian Wei if he gets angry over most things.

In the Japanese version of Dynasty Warriors 4: Empires, Dian Wei is given the nickname of "The Loyal Bodyguard" while the English version changes it to "The Loyal Blade". As a dominant ruler in Dynasty Warriors 5: Empires, he calls his five greatest warriors the "Dian Five".

His third and fourth weapons in the Dynasty Warriors series are literally named "Ox Head" in the Asian script, which has several possible interpretations. One of the possible meanings could be tied to one of the guardians of Hell in Chinese mythology, Ox Head. Working together with Horse Face, they are demons who guard the Underworld and judge the recently deceased spirits. Unlike Horse Face the jailer, Ox Head is depicted as an outright enemy to human souls who hardly thinks to spare them mercy. Another mention in Buddhism depicts an ox demon who had the power to slay anyone before him in three steps. It could also be a reference to Chihyu, which has ties to Xu Zhu in the series. A not-as-likely-but-interesting possibility for the "Ox Head" may be Gozutennou, a god of worship that arose during the Meiji era of Japanese history. He doesn't have a literal head of an ox like Ox Head and others, despite the Han characters used in his name. In a famous tale, Gozutennou disguised himself as an old man and stayed at a random hut for the night. Treated with kindness during his stay and impressed by the brotherly bonds he witnessed, Gozutennou warned the family of a plague that would soon decimate the nearby village and asked for their immediate departure. Since they followed the god's advice, the family became survivors of a disease that otherwise spared no one.

Dian Wei's weapons in Dynasty Warriors 6 are originally named after destructive actions made to his foes. His weapons could either instantly shatter them (Standard), blow them apart to smithereens (Skill), or mash them into a pulp (Strength). The lion engraved into his Strength weapon echoes the beast and Dian Wei's role as a guardian. Sculptures of lions within East Asian are positioned south -or the side opposing a ruler- so as to spot danger before it comes.

Dian Wei's original outfit for Dynasty Warriors 7 is a wrestling uniform. According to the characters printed on it, he wrestles for "Huang University". Huang is likely an abbreviation for fenghuang, a legendary bird found within Chinese mythology often used to symbolize Wei throughout the series.

The original name for Dian Wei's personal item in Warriors Orochi is "Headquarters' Banner". The same banner alludes to the historical incident in which he waved a heavy banner single handedly and led to his quick promotion as a vassal under Xiahou Dun.

"Calm down a bit. You'll frighten the cows. You have to treat them gently."

~~Xu Zhu and Dian Wei; Dynasty Warriors 7

"Hah! That's what you get for attacking the mighty Dian Wei! Face the Coming Evil and tremble!"

"The Coming Evil. An ancient hero, correct? You are powerful, Master Dian Wei, but I'm not sure about that name."

"Why not? He was the left hand of the king! Or was it the right? In either case, a trusted and powerful advisor!"

"True, but both he and his king are now famous for their cruelty. Is that really who you want to be compared to?"

"Heh, I don't care about that. Cao Cao gave me that name based on my skills. It's nothing to do with being cruel. I'll be compared to anyone he likes if it makes Cao Cao happy. That's how a good retainer should be."

"It seems I was wrong, then. It is a fine name, making clear the bond between you and Master Cao Cao."

A local of Jiwu (己吾, present day Sui, Henan), Dian Wei's birth-year is unknown. The Records of Three Kingdoms describes Dian Wei as a stalwart man with superhuman strength.

When he was young, Dian Wei once agreed to kill a rival of his fellow townsman. Disguised as a noble, Dian Wei traveled to his enemy's house in Suiyang and entered the gates without challenge. He then slayed his enemy's entire family. As the victim lived near the market, news of his death soon spread and hundreds of men went on pursuit of the murderer. However, none of them dared duel Dian Wei, who headed out of town with the pursuers at his heels. After walking four or five li, Dian Wei met his companions and escaped after a fight.

In 189, regional warlord Zhang Miao was raising an army to join the coalition against Dong Zhuo, who was holding the Emperor hostage in the imperial court. Dian Wei heeded the call. He greatly impressed his superiors when he managed to keep a huge banner swaying in strong wind upright with just one hand, while several other men with their combined efforts could not do so.

Dian Wei later served under Xiahou Dun, a trusted general under Cao Cao. During the campaign against Lü Bu in Puyang, Cao Cao and his troops were caught a midst an onrush by the enemy. According to Records of the Three Kingdoms, Dian Wei gathered scores of men around himself. All of them put on two layers of armor, discarded their shields, and charged towards the enemy holding spears and halberds. Another wave of enemy closing in from the west unleashed a barrage of arrows onto Dian Wei and his men. Oblivious to the missiles, Dian Wei told his comrade, "Tell me when the enemies are ten paces away." His comrade did so. Dian Wei said again, "Tell me when it's five paces." His comrade then cried with fear, "The enemies are upon us!"

Spinning around, Dian Wei flung the dozen javelins he was holding at his enemies. With each fling a man fell from his saddle and not a javelin missed its target. The enemies then retreated. Deeply impressed, Cao Cao promoted Dian Wei to the rank of Captain and made him his own personal bodyguard.

Hence-after, Dian Wei was always at the forefront of every battle he participated in. He was also loyal and responsible. He stood guard outside Cao Cao's tent throughout the day and slept somewhere close during the night, and rarely returned to his own quarters. The capable warrior was also an extraordinary eater and drinker. He ate in huge mouthfuls and drank in long gulps. Because of his enormous appetite, several men were required to serve him whenever he sat down for meals.

In 197, Cao Cao waged a war against Zhang Xiu, the governor of Wancheng (宛城), who immediately surrendered to Cao Cao. Cao Cao was very pleased and invited Zhang Xiu and his men to a banquet. Throughout the banquet, Dian Wei stood behind Cao Cao holding a giant axe, the blade of which was one chi long. Zhang Xiu and his man dared not even look up at the pair whenever they toasted to Cao Cao.

About ten days later, Zhang Xiu ate his words and led a force to attack Cao Cao's camp. Cao Cao escaped on horseback. Dian Wei stood guard at the front gate of the camp ground, with a dozen men on his side, and fought fiercely using a long halberd. One swing of the halberd saw more than ten enemy spears broken. As the battle went on, Dian Wei's companions were killed one by one, while Dian Wei was also wounded in many places.

The mighty warrior then grabbed two enemies and used them as weapons. No other enemy dared to approach him. Dian Wei rushed forward and killed a few more enemies before finally dying of blood loss. He was still staring and swearing as he took his last breath. Only after assuring that he was dead did the enemies dare to come forward and severed his head, which was passed around for all to see. When the word spread, all the enemies came to revere Dian Wei's body, not believing anyone could fight so ferociously.

When Cao Cao heard of Dian Wei's death, he broke down in tears. He then ordered his men to steal Dian Wei's corpse back so that the warrior could be buried in his hometown. Thereafter, whenever Cao Cao passed by the tomb, he would stop to mourn Dian Wei. Cao Cao also made Dian Wei's son, Dian Man, a commander major and kept him at his side.